THE FISTIC ARENA.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLVIII, Issue 205, 28 July 1928, Page 20 (Supplement)

THE FISTIC ARENA.

(BY “SOLAR PLEXUS.”)

Unique Record. Billy Cook, an English heavy-weight, has a rather unique record. He has won his last halt-dozen fights on a claim of foul.

Demsky Retires, Paul Demsky lias retired from the ring game for good. He now does journalistic work. Paul Praised. . Jack Paul, of New Zealand: With no second grade welter-weight in sight worthy of his glove, the promoters ought to match him with a lOst 71b man of the higher grade. He is good to watch. He is-always at it, and there is always expectancy about his work, for there is a k.o. in every right he lets fly.— r Sydney Deforce. Foreign Boxers in England.

England is being Hooded with Italian and Belgian boxers just now (states an exchange). Although the money iis not any too great, it is better than that which is handed out in Belgium or Italy. Parker Anxious for Fight.

Eddie Parker is anxious to get into harness again, and would like to meet Lachio McDonald, who is returning to New Zealand to meet Harry Casey at Palmerston North. Parker challenges any middleweight in the Dominion.

Game In Gisborne. ]3oxing in Gisborne is returning to the headquarters from which it blossomed out several years ago, .when Jack and Tom Hceney, with other wellknown boxers of recent years, began to show their mettle and draw the crowds to sparring exhibitions, says the Herald. Gisborne, as well as New Zealand, owes to Tom Hoeney's prominence a wonderful advertisement, and, to many who have no personal interest in boxing, it seems a pity that

the. medium through which Hceney won laurels l'or hunst-li and lor the country should he allowed to sink into desuetude. Members of the Gisborne Boxing Association aro keen to have the sport on a good looting, in view of the probable return ie his home town of the British Empire candidate i'oy the world’s 1 fistic honour at some early dato after the titlo bout.

Tommy Mcinnes. 'Describing the fights of Tommy Mcinnes (the Scottish middle-weight who recently arrived in New Zealand under contract to the Northern Boxing Association) an Australian writer says: “Tommy lias every reason to feel dissatisfied with some of the verdicts that have been given against him at Home. On several occasions ho lias been disqualified for foul hitting. But Mcinnes is not a foul fighter. He rips home rising blows to the body that undoubtedly strike terror into his opponents. As a consequence more than one of the men he lias met have risen on their toes in sheer fright as he started to punch for the body.

Boxing “Hall-Marks.” Generally, exponents of the fistic art are easily recognisable by their battered countenances, but in this respect, Tommy Mclnnes is an exception ; except for a slightly flattened nose, he has nothing in his make-up to indicate that he is a professional fighter. Despite his many battles', ho has succeeded in keeping himself freo from the slightest suggestion of a “cauliflower” or other badges of his business.

Hard to Stop. Din-ins his fights in Australia Jack Paul, of New Zealand, has earned a reputation for toughness, but this quality got so severe a test in his match with Billy Richards that the spectators appealed to the referee to stop the fight, says the Auckland Star. This was not done until the last round. From the tenth round on Paul received a terrific battering. In the fourteenth the referee advised him to surrender, but his seconds refused the offer. After two hard punches in the fifteenth round, the referee crowned Richards, who was always master of the situation. In the eighth round Paul stopped one of the heaviest punches delivered at the Stadium, without even staggering. Despite that, he won the eleventh round, the only one which was really his.

Boxing in New Zealand.

Jottings From Many Sources.

Barber v. Griffiths To-Night. Tommy Barber, recognised as the feather-weight champion of Australia, will make his bow oaloro a Dunedin crowd to-night with Tommy Griffiths as his opponent, and this is a bout that should be worth going a long way to see (says the Dunedin Star). Barber is a speedy boxer and a solid tighter, and Griffiths is so clever a boxer that he should fully extend the Australian star. This bout will give some line as to Barber’s form and his chances with Johiinny Leckie; but it will probably be found that Grilfiths has not the punching power of his opponent, of whom Norman Gillespie, then featherweight champion of Australia, spoke very highly when he was in Dunedin. Gillespie was beaten by Griffiths, but showed a complete reversal of form when he met Leckie in the following contest—one of the finest bouts ever seen in Dunedin resulting. Gillespie reckons Barber a better boxer anti harder puncher than lie is himself, though he holds that Barber’s defence is not ui> to his. Thus it can be seen that to-night’s mill should he a good spectacle, and, though Griffiths may surprise, the writer expects Barber to win. As Gillespie said, the Johnny Leckie-Bnrbcr encounter should be a fight in a million. Surprise for McGraw. Jiminv McLarnin, who was recently beaten by Mandell for the world’s light-weight championship at Madison Square, New York, on June 22, knocked out Phil McGraw m the first round —the first time in his seven years at the game that McGraw has been beaten by the short-cut route Claims on Purdy’s Services.

Charlie Purely is returning to New Zealand this month, and a number of associations are laying claim to his services (says the Auckland Herald). The Northern Association has a letter from him offering that body first consideration.

EUGENE COURTS OPINION. j There may still he room for doubting (writes Eugene Corri) whether Phil Scott will make completely good as a ' fighter of international renown, but, | whatever the future has in store for j him, it will ever be to his credit that; ho has captured tiro very American critics who but a short while ago sought to make a laughing stock of him. It has long been the practice to say of Rritish heavyweights that they were lamentably lacking in _ “guts”; that: they were too hypersensitive for words;': that, when performing in public, they, were almost afraid of their own shadow.

Myself, I have at times waxed not a j; little vitriolic, believing that they well ; deserved castigation. After what, Scott has accomplished we had better!, hold our peace. It was a notable achievement for him to heat Monte Mumi at a moment when he was being cruelly caricatured bv tbe whole of America. And, although we on this side do not know much about tbe Ita-

lian giant Roberti, I am going to assume that he is more than a useful heavyweight, much more formidable than some of those against whom Scott

at various times lias cut a sorry figure That Scott proved beyond all question to be the superior of Koberti must be accepted as the best possible evidence that he lias come to be a new and an

infinitely better Scott. I know agreat deal of bow the affairs of the ring are conducted on the other side, and I can assure you that the fact of a stranger forcing a decision in'his favour —that is. a decision in the absence of a knock-out—represents a mighty performance. All my American friends feared tlrat Scott would not bo equal to Robert!. It is a fact, so I was told, that Roberti was put into tbe ring with tbe idea of disposing of Scott as a possible contender for tbe title. Now Tex Rickard and most other people have again taken Scott into their reckoning. From Rickard’s point of view it is a pity that our champion did not arrive on tbe sccno earlier. Nothing would have given Rickard greater joy than to put Scott with Heeney. Such a match in New York would have been worth a mint of money to the promoter. However, Scott can for the time being afford to forget all about Heeney, and make it his business to force a match with Risko. He must also think of Sharkey.